Forever
by GlitterInTheSky
Summary: Peeta and Katniss are the prince and the princess of the two sides of Panem respectively. They are believed to be the rightful heirs of their kingdoms and must marry to join the country into one again. A lot of problems will be thrown in their way, but will their love for each other outshine them all? Modern AU. Rated T but may go into M in later chapters.
1. Prologue

Hey guys! This is my newest story! Hope you like it!

The characters of The Hunger Games don't belong to me.

"_Love has gone and left me and the days are all alike; _

_Eat I must, and sleep I will, — and would that night were here! _

_But ah! — To lie awake and hear the slow hours strike! _

_Would that it were day again! — With twilight near!"_

_~ Edna St. Vincent Millay "Ashes of Life"_

Forever

By GlitterInTheSky

Prologue

**Four decades earlier…**

In a place called Panem, a war was raging. People fight and blood splatters on the ground as clanging of swords and shouts fill the air. And soon, the country was never the same again. They have separated into two parts, the Seam and the Merchants. Each was ruled by a royal family and they believe that one day the kingdoms will be united. They have called a psychic to discuss the future.

"The kingdom will be united if the rightful heirs will be born." The psychic begins. Each and every person leans forward.

"In the Merchants, a boy with golden hair and the bluest of eyes ever seen will be the rightful heir. He will be born with the sweetest smile and the most handsome face. He will be raised as a proper prince and be joyful and pleasant as long as he lives." The psychic tells the Merchants. The Merchants are happy with the news and the Seam leans forward and remains fixated on what the psychic will tell them.

"In the Seam, a girl with shining chestnut brown hair and silver eyes will be the rightful heir. She will be born with a scowl and an extraordinary beautiful face. She will be raised as a difficult girl but with a warm compassion. She will often scowl and be indifferent. She will be hard and cold." The psychic tell the Sam and they cry out in disbelief.

"But, the boy will meet the girl soon. He will provide her a balance. He will shed light on the most horrible situations and give her the strength to live a happy day. He will give her joy when everything she sees is hopelessness. They will create a bond fueled by the desire to live with one another, to be with one another. They will be a match, as you say, in heaven." The psychic proclaims and the people are buzzing about, excited to know these rightful heirs. A man raises his hand and the psychic motions for the man.

"So, you are saying that these royal heirs will marry?" The man boldly asks and silences fill the room.

"The future remains untold as I can only see what they will have with each other." The psychic tells the people and the man asks again.

"If I may ask, what will they have with each other?" The man asks and the psychic smiles.

"Love, one of the most powerful things in the world. Weaker than will but stronger than fear." The psychic tells the room and with a gust of wind, he disappears.

**A long time later…**

The Merchants rejoice as their Queen, Queen Tanya Mellark will be giving birth to a baby boy.

Deep in the King and Queen's chambers….

"Your majesty, the baby is about to come out." The midwife assures the Queen as a painful expression crosses her face. The King grins happily as he pushes his wife's sweaty hair out of her face.

"Tanya, you have to push. Just imagine, in a few hours, we will be able to hold our baby boy!" The King cries out in happiness as the Queen meekly smiles.

"Yes, you are right, Wade." The Queen tells him steadily as she pushes and soon the midwife grins.

"You are crowning and dear, he has blonde hair!" The midwife cries in surprise and puts a hand over her heart. The kingdom has already given up on the belief of their unity with the Seam because of the years that have passed with no boy with blonde hair, blue eyes and a smiling face has been born.

"You can do it, Tanya!" King Wade urged her on and she pushed and screamed as a wail rose and the midwife took the baby gingerly. The midwife freezes and stares at the boy.

"What's wrong?" The King asks and the midwife snaps out of the trance and shows the baby.

"Blonde hair, blue eyes and a smiling face. Sire, the respectful heir is born." The midwife tells the King. The baby only grins as his blue eyes shine.

**Two months later…**

The miracle of the male heir reaches the palace. They hope that the female heir will be born soon.

**In another kingdom… **

In the King and Queen's chambers…

"Push now, your majesty! You are near crowning!" The midwife urges the Queen and she does so and cries out in pain.

"You can do it, Iris!" the King urges her and she nods.

"I can do it, Robert." The Queen tells him and grimaces as a painful contraction overwhelms her and she pushes harder.

"You are crowning, your majesty! Only one more big push and your baby girl will be out! She has a lot of dark hair though." The midwife reports. The Queen pushes and she screams out in pain.

"There!" The midwife happily proclaims as a wailing baby is in her arms. Then she notices, and a look of shock crosses her face.

"What is it?" The Queen asks and looks worried.

"This... baby has dark hair, silver eyes and a scowl, but so beautiful." The midwife tells them and shows the baby girl scowling. The baby's silver eyes are cold and distant.

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I hope you like it! You will have to know the rightful heirs later…. Heehee!

If there is anything wrong here, please don't blame me! I was in a hurry and I have to post this story already.

I thought of this idea and this is my ORIGINAL story! I have not copied any other one, okay?

Next Chapter: 16 years later and in Peeta's POV. (Whoops! Just slipped out but you already know, don't ya?) Will he finally meet Katniss face-to-face and be actually able to speak to her? Stay tuned!

Xoxo,

GlitterInTheSky

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On my Twitter account, I can update you on my latest schemes and be able to ask you for your opinions! Just follow me and I'll be your tour guide! Thank you for reading!

May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!

GlitterInTheSky


	2. Chapter 1

Thank you so much to those people who read this story! You know who you are! Please review! Look at author's note below.

The characters of The Hunger Games don't belong to me.

"_Cause I'm  
So tired of the same old things  
I'ma need something new in my life, yeah  
So tired of the same old games  
Yeah it's time I started feeling right…"_

_~Cody Simpson "Got Me Good"_

Forever

By GlitterInTheSky

Chapter One

Peeta's POV

**16 years later…**

I sit quietly and listen to the sound of cascading water. The fountain I'm sitting on has been in the palace since my parents were born. It has been an antique heirloom to my mother. I sit on the edge and grip my sketchbook.

I concentrate and try to draw _her_.

I start with her heart shaped face. I draw the outline very carefully and trace it again.

I then work on her perfect hair. I draw it in its usual braid and side-swept bangs.

I go on to her body. I draw the petite figure but curvy shape of her body and emphasize the curves she loves hiding. I draw her in her usual plain shirt, hunting jacket, jeans and hunting boots. I draw the sheath of arrows on her back and her hand clutching the bow.

I now work on her face. That beautiful face, which will make all the other boys stop and stare at her for a good hour. I draw her mesmerizing silver eyes. I start on her freckles that scatter on the bridge of her nose and-

"Peeta! It's time for breakfast!" Mom calls for me and I groan.

Now I'll never get to finish drawing _her_.

"Be there in a minute, Mom!" I call out and grab the pencils and sketchbook and stand up. I brush my blue polo shirt with my free hand and straighten my dark wash jeans. I walk to the dining room backdoor and slide the glass door open. The smell of ham and bacon waft into my nose and I grin. I place my sketchbook and pencils on a nearby table and proceed to the dining table.

"Yo, Peet! You're girlfriend is on TV!" Rye, my older brother shouts from the living room just as I was about to sit at the dining table. I look at my Mom who is daintily eating and she nods and beams as she motions for me to join Rye.

Rye, short for Ryland, is my older brother by two years while Wheaton, my other older brother, is older than me by four years. All of us have the Mellark qualities and the Merchant qualities. Blonde haired and blue eyed people are mostly seen here in the Merchants side, while in the Seam, it's more like dark haired and grey eyed. I know I am the rightful heir of our kingdom since I had the qualities the psychic described. My brothers were born with frowns on their faces unlike me.

"Where?" I ask Rye as I approach the living room.

"There. She's with her little sister, Primrose, right?" I nod and look at the TV. Sure enough, it's _her_.

Her chestnut brown hair fall in soft curls down her back as her silver eyes shine. She is wearing a beautiful one shouldered red gown with glitter at the bottom that makes it look like it's on fire if she moves. She is wearing her trademark scowl that she has been born with. She looks nothing like Prim, her sister. Prim looks like their mother, since Queen Iris had been originally from the Merchants, but she ran off with King Robert, the king of the Seam. Prim's blonde hair is in two braids that run to her elbows as she smiles with glee. Her blue eyes dance in joy as she twirls around in the white gown that makes her looks so innocent and fresh, as lovely as the Primrose.

"Why are they on TV?" I ask Rye as I plop down on a nearby bean bag.

"No idea." Rye replies and turns the volume higher.

"Today, the King of the Seam has finally announced that our majesty, Princess Katniss and Princess Primrose, will be joining Panem High School tomorrow!" The reporter announced and I freeze.

Panem High School.

That's my school.

"Was that what I just heard?" I ask Rye and Rye smirks.

"Guess your girl really is meant to be." He says and walks off towards the dining room as I sit in shock. _She_, the one and only Katniss, will be joining my school and be with my friends. I shake my head in disbelief and suddenly a beep emits form my phone. I snatch in from my pocket and unlock it to find a message waiting for me.

_Finnick: Sooo… just saw the news that SHE will be joining our school. Seems the odds are definitely in your favor huh, Loverboy?_

I grin and type my reply.

_Me: Yeah, and stop calling me Loverboy. I thought you stopped with the nicknames?_

_Finnick: When Annie is around! Otherwise, I'm a free man to sing "Sexy and I Know It"._

"Peeta!" Mom calls for me and I type Finnick my reply.

_Me: Yeah and I'm Chuck Norris. Now, go get Annie and make out for awhile. I'm heading off to breakfast land._

_Finnick: Will do. And you are more of a wacky and wonky looking Mr. Bean! LMAO! Bye! Hhdhdhdhhfhf…._

Okay, that was probably Annie kissing him and him losing control of his fingers. He is my best friend.

I head to the dining room and see Wheaton yawning and slurping coffee. Rye is gobbling down toast and chugging down milk at the same time. I grab a plate of ham and eggs and eat them slowly. Manners are important for future kings. Dad comes in and grabs Panem Daily, our country's newspaper.

"Good morning, Dad." I greet him and beam. He smiles back and his laugh lines show.

"Morning to you too, son. Morning, Tanya." Dad says and kisses Mom on her cheek. She grins and wipes her mouth.

"I'll be out with Aunt Iris for awhile. Be sure to behave boys. Effie is coming." She grins and we groan. Effie is Queen Iris and mom's lady-in-waiting. Probably Katniss and Prim's too. Aunt Iris, as Mom prefers us to call her, is our Mom's best friend even thought they are from different sides. They usually shop together and bond. I always ask for Mom to bring Katniss here but she does not. She says "I will have enough time to see my bride-to-be in my future." I know what she means, but a tiny part of me worries that Katniss won't ever learn to love me. She will feel forced and the last thing I want to do on Earth is to hurt her.

"Surprise!" Effie trills out as she bursts in through the dining room door and Wheaton places his head in his hands as I choke on my milk.

"Effie, it's so good to see you! How is my favorite lady-in-waiting?" I ask her and throw a winning smile and she swoons. Effie always has a little crush on me. But sorry, my heart belongs only to _her_.

"Show-off." Rye murmurs. I ignore him and gulp down my glass of milk.

"Very, very good! Are you alright, Wheaton?" Effie asks him worriedly and he nods. He probably has a hangover from his friend's bachelor party last night.

"So, Effie. How is Katniss?" Mom asks and winks at me. I silently thank the best mom on Earth.

"The usual. Moody and always scowling. Except with Prim. What I would give to see the girl smiling!" Effie tells us and rubs her left eyebrow, a nervous habit of hers. _Me too_, I think.

"Oh really?" I ask innocently and Effie nods.

"Yes. That poor girl is beautiful, but she wastes it on scowling. What I would give to have a face like hers!" Effie moans and sits on a nearby chair.

"Have you seen Katniss on the cover of Teen Panem?" Effie asks excitedly and Mom looks surprised.

"Oh, really?" Mom asks and Effie nods happily.

"She was gorgeous on the cover! We literally had to force her there and into the outfits! Dear, was she mad!" Effie clucks and pulls out this month's Teen Panem magazine. It's Katniss on the cover wearing a beautiful detailed lace-trimmed floral dress with red high heels. She is smiling gracefully and sitting on a throne with crossed legs. She does look beautiful.

"Had to force her to pose like that! Really horrible princess…" Effie mutters. Mom takes the magazine and flips through it.

"Oh! She's moving into your school, Peeta, with her best friend." Mom informs me with raised eyebrows as she flips a page.

"Who's she?" I ask her and drink some water.

"Actually, he's a boy." Mom tells me and I choke on my water. Rye pats my back harshly and I stop him.

"I don't want to die yet." I tell him.

"Sorry, bro." Rye apologizes and shoots me his usual goofy grin.

"So, does anybody like waffles?" Mom asks us brightly.

I go to the game room in the palace after breakfast. Effie really is starting to get on my nerves. It's surprisingly admirable how she can be so bright and bubbly in the morning but she's really squeaky. I head to the lounge chair and start picking out Wii games. I choose the Wii Sports one and place it in.

"Can I join?" Rye asks me as he barges in just as I was choosing a sport.

"Sure." I answer.

"Let's play the tennis one." Rye tells me and I click it.

We spend the next twenty minutes playing several sports and Wheaton has barged in and started playing with us too. The Wii can have 4 players, but we only have 3 remotes, one for each of us.

"Whew. You're not too bad at golf, Peet." Wheaton compliments me and I grin.

"You're not bad in boxing either." I tell him and he grins before going to the mini refrigerator and grabbing a can of root beer. He looks at us questioningly and I shake my head no while Rye nods. Wheaton hands Rye a can and they open it and chug it down. Drinking's not really my thing.

I head up to my room just as they start playing another game. Wait, my sketchbook, I left it. I head back to the dining room and look for it. I find it on the table and I snatch it and head upstairs to my bedroom. I head to the left corridor and find the third door that leads to my bedroom. I open the door and my room greets me. The simple white walls adorned with my framed paintings and the simple things such as the desk and the bed are the only things I really want in my room and my own bathroom and terrace. I want my room to be light and airy, to have a sense of comfort and freedom. To live my own life.

When I told Mom my plan for my bedroom when I was about 12, she looked at me weirdly and asked me if I was gay.

I head to the empty canvas and decided that I'll continue the sketch later and just paint. I manage to paint the sunset but it lacks something. I realize my phone is beeping and I take it out.

_Finnick: Heya Peeta! What'cha doin'?_

_Me: Painting. Why?_

_Finnick : Just really bored. Annie left for brunch at her grandparents' house and I got nothing to do…_

_Me: You wanna come over?_

_Finnick: Sure. Be there in your mighty palace at about ten minutes._

_Me: See you then._

_Finnick: Bye Peets. _

I grin and stuff it back into my pocket. He's my best friend all right. We've been friends since 1st grade. I still remember that day.

_As I walked into the school on my first day, a lot of kids were whispering and pointing at me. I, as a prince, am really, really special to them. They bow while I walk uncomfortably while nobody dares take a step near me._

"_Hello! You are Prince Peeta, right?" A boy with bronze hair and startling sea green eyes asks me as he walks to me. I shyly nod and he grins._

"_I'm Finnick Odair. But call me Finn, everybody calls me that." He says proudly and I grin._

"_You wanna go to class together?" He asks me and I beam._

"_Sure." I answer and we run off to class. And that was the day we became friends._

I flop down on my bed. There's nothing to do.

"Hey Peets!" Finnick calls out as he emerges from my door.

"Finn! I'm so bored…" I tell him and sit up. He chuckles and surveys the painting.

"God, Peets! I'm sure if you weren't a prince, you'll be a painter for sure." He says, shaking his head ever so slightly.

"Yeah, yeah, now how was Annie?" I ask him and he grins. He did get his dream girl after all.

_It was in 5__th__ grade and Finnick was chewing on his sandwich during lunch. He taps my shoulder._

"_One day, I'll marry that girl." He tells me and points across the cafeteria and right at Annie. With her dark hair and emerald green eyes, she is really pretty._

"_Who is she?" I ask him and Finnick breaks out of his trance._

"_Annie. Annie Cresta. She's the daughter of Sam and Emma Cresta." He tells me and I look at him in surprise._

"_The owners of the fish shop in town?"I ask._

"_Yeah." Finnick answers and I nod and chew on my sandwich._

"_How 'bout you, Peeta? Who do you like?" Finnick asks me and I blush._

"_No one." I tell him and he smirks._

"_Your face tells me all. Who's the unlucky girl that snatched your heart?" Finnick tells me. We all know about the betrothal._

"_I like Katniss." I tell him and he raises his eyebrows._

"_The girl you're meant to be with?" He asks me and I nod._

"_Princess of the Seam?" He asks and I nod again._

"_You're lucky; at least you end up with your dream girl." Finnick sighs and gets back to eating._

"Sooo…. What are we doing?" Finnick asks me and I shrug.

"Dunno." I tell him and flip on the TV. It just plays a movie called Expendables 2.

"Want to meet with the gang? Annie's almost done with her brunch." Finnick tells me when his phone buzzes.

"Sure. Let's meet up at the mall." I tell him and he quickly texts something. Panem Mall is a huge sprawling mall filled with about 300 tores and a huge food court. It has a lot of restaurants also. It has really modern facilities and high tech things.

"Mall meet-up now. Check." Finnick tells me as he fishes for his keys. He finds them and we head down and into the parking lot. He finds his Jaguar XF and we sit in it.

"Johanna is going to flip when she sees you since she probably knows the news about Katniss." Finnick smirks as he starts the engine.

"Shut-" My answer gets cut off as Finnick revs the engine and heads off to the mall.

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"Took you guys like, forever to get here." Annie whines as she puts a hand on her hip. Madge grins.

"We've been waiting here since about 5 minutes ago. That's how impatient Annie gets." Madge tells us.

"Sorry, my dear Ann." Finnick apologizes lovingly and kisses her cheek. They are so mushy and sweet at the same time.

"Sure, Finn." Annie giggles as she kisses him full on the lips. I pretend to gag. Madge sees me and giggles.

"Whoa, there! You guys gotta stop with the PDA shows everywhere." Johanna tells us as she arrives.

"Peety, my boy! The news really took us by surprise."Johanna tells me and smirks.

"Yeah." I say nonchalantly.

"Well, I have something to say." Johanna informs me and grins coolly. I'm in trouble.

Man, Johanna knows how to lay it on thick.

"Ya got that right!" Finnick tells me and I look at him. Did I really just say that out loud?

"That's not the first time that happened." Finnick tells me and I groan. He really never lets me forget about the time I thought about Katniss being my wife and said it out loud.

"Yeah, it's 8:39 pm. Shouldn't you be at home?" I ask him and he shrugs. We ate at the food court for lunch and shared a huge pizza for dinner. Johanna went home shortly after that and Annie soon went home too. Me and Finnick decided to head to my house or palace.

"Bye Peeta." Finnick tells me blearily and heads home. I head to the bathroom and washed my face and changed into the comfortable pajamas Mom laid out for me. She is really the best Mom ever.

I slip into my huge bed and as soon as my head hits the pillow I only think about one thing.

_Katniss._

And there you have it, folks! Your first ever chapter in Peeta's POV.

Peeta's Mom is OOC, but I want Peeta to get the sweet, kind, loving and affectionate mother he so badly deserves.

The mall I hardly described is based off a mall I have here in the Philippines. It's called SM Mall of Asia or otherwise known as MOA. Sorry for the description! I really lack in the descriptive area.

The link to Katniss's dress will be posted on my profile and on Twitter. It's a really pretty dress and I have a similar one.

Finnick loves making out with Annie in modern AU stories is common knowledge, am I right?

Peeta's just that easy to embarrass, you know?

I should probably stop with this note since I started asking questions already.

Next chapter: Chapter Two in Katniss's POV, her reaction to the news and what she has in store for her. Meet the mysterious best friend! This chapter is on the same day as this one, except in different outlooks.

Follow me on Twitter: GlitterInTheSky

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If you follow me, you'll know my latest schemes and know when I'll update! So stay tuned!

May The Odds Be Ever In Your Favor!

GlitterInTheSky


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